Category Archives: California Dreamin’

A chronicle of our escape from the brown leaves and gray skies of winter.

Our Evening in Flagstaff

We left the Grand Canyon and headed to Flagstaff, Arizona to catch the train to Los Angeles. Half way between Grand Canyon Village and Flagstaff we got a call from the station agent in Flagstaff. The Southwest Chief – originally … Continue reading

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And the rhythm of the rails is all they feel

Our day began bright and early. We boarded the train for Los Angeles at 12:01 a.m. – two hours after its originally scheduled departure. The porter showed us to our room in the sleeper car. Our room included a bath … Continue reading

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Heading to San Luis Obispo on the Coast Starlight

Stepping off the Southwest Chief in Los Angeles we were told that we had about ten minutes before we were scheduled to board the Coast Starlight for our journey up the coast. We had originally hoped to have at least … Continue reading

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The Goldilocks Conundrum

Around 4:00 we arrived in San Luis Obispo, referred to as SLO by the locals. At the rental car office the National rental agent proudly announced that he had upgraded us from the intermediate size car that we had reserved … Continue reading

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Tuesday evening, Joey and Sam drove up from Paso Robles to have dinner with us at Indigo Moon in Cambria. It was wonderful to have more time to visit with them. We were very happy that they took the time … Continue reading

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We headed north to Paso Robles to have dinner with my nephew, Joey. He and Sam, his girlfriend/partner in merriment had just moved in to their new house two weeks ago. We were stunned at how organized, decorated and fully … Continue reading

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William Randolph Hearst – more dollars than sense

After our late dinner visit with Joey & Sam in Paso Robles we drove to Cambria where we would spend the next two days. Betty forewarned the innkeepers of the Olallieberry Inn of our late arrival and they left a … Continue reading

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Elephant Seals at Piedras Blancas

About four miles north of the Hearst Castle along Highway 1 we came to the Piedras Blancas elephant seal rookery. This is the largest elephant seal rookery on the west coast. We were assured by our hosts at the Olallieberry … Continue reading

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Scenic Coast Highway 1

Wednesday morning we left Cambria and headed up Highway 1 along the coast to Pacific Grove. The drive along Highway 1 was one of the expected highlights of our trip. Highway 1 is one of the iconic scenic highways in … Continue reading

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Green Gables

When we arrived in Pacific Grove we headed for the Green Gables Inn, our home for the next two days. Green Gables was built in 1888. It is “a Four Sisters Inn.” For the English majors among us, to my … Continue reading

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